Djibo Bakary (1922 – 16 April 1998) was a

socialist Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...

politician and an important figure in the

independence movement Independence is a condition of a nation, country, or state, in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the status of a ...

Niger Niger, officially the Republic of the Niger, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is a unitary state Geography of Niger#Political geography, bordered by Libya to the Libya–Niger border, north-east, Chad to the Chad–Niger border, east ...

. Bakary was the first Nigerien to hold local executive power since the beginning of French colonialism. He was replaced as leader by his cousin

Hamani Diori Hamani Diori (6 June 1916 – 23 April 1989) was the first President of the Republic of Niger. He was appointed to that office in 1960, when Niger gained independence from France. Although corruption was a common feature of his administration, ...

prior to the country's independence.

Life and career

Djibo Bakary came to prominence as the general secretary of the PPN - which had been founded as the Nigerien branch of the RDA - in the early 1950s. He conflicted with RDA leader

Félix Houphouët-Boigny Félix Houphouët-Boigny (; 18 October 1905 – 7 December 1993), affectionately called Papa Houphouët or Le Vieux ("The Old One"), was an Ivorian politician and physician who served as the first List of heads of state of Ivory Coast, pr ...

as the latter gradually imposed a pro- French line on the party and distanced himself from the

French Communist Party The French Communist Party (, , PCF) is a Communism, communist list of political parties in France, party in France. The PCF is a member of the Party of the European Left, and its Member of the European Parliament, MEPs sit with The Left in the ...

. Bakary criticized this decision by saying that it should have been preceded by a democratic debate inside the party instead of being unilaterally declared. However, Houphouët sent a three-man mission (composed of Diori, Ouezzin Coulibaly and Mamadou Konaté) to communicate the new line to the various local sections; this mission fired Bakary as PPN general secretary.Samuel Decalo. Historical Dictionary of Niger (3rd ed.). Scarecrow Press, Boston & Folkestone, (1997) pp. 56-59 ("Bakary"), 247-255 ("Political Parties"), 272 ("SAWABA") As Diori and Boubou Hama gained control over the PPN, Bakary proceeded to found a new party, Sawaba, the next year. He was then expelled from the PPN. Bakary served as

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

Niamey Niamey () is the capital and largest city of Niger. As the Niamey Urban Community (, CUN), it is a Regions of Niger, first-level division of Niger, surrounded by the Tillabéri Region, in the western part of the country. Niamey lies on the Nige ...

from 1956 to 1958. From 20 May 1957 to 14 December 1958, he held the position of Vice President of the Council of Government. From 26 July 1958 to 10 October 1958, he was the President of the Government Council of Niger. In July 1958, tensions between Bakary and his pro-French colleagues again mounted. Bakary virulently opposed

Charles de Gaulle Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle (22 November 18909 November 1970) was a French general and statesman who led the Free France, Free French Forces against Nazi Germany in World War II and chaired the Provisional Government of the French Re ...

's constitutional referendum during the congress of the African Regroupment Party in

Cotonou Cotonou (; ) is the largest city in Benin. Its official population count was 679,012 inhabitants in 2012; however, over two million people live in the larger urban area. The urban area continues to expand, notably toward the west. The city lies ...

. As he denounced de Gaulle's "economic blackmail" towards the colonies and demanded immediate independence for Niger, he managed to rally a majority of the congress delegates behind his cause. This led figureheads including Jacques Foccart,

Pierre Messmer Pierre Joseph Auguste Messmer (; 20 March 191629 August 2007) was a French Gaullist politician. He served as Minister of Armies under Charles de Gaulle from 1960 to 1969 – the longest serving since Étienne François, duc de Choiseul under ...

and Houphouët-Boigny to decide that Bakary should be brought down. The colonial administrator Louis Rollet (seen as too conciliatory) was replaced by , who organized a massive campaign in favor of the "yes" vote on the referendum. Moreover, Colombani worked with the far-right general Raoul Salan to bring death squads into villages seen as Sawaba strongholds and to terrorize the villagers into submission. This led to a victory for the "yes" camp in the Nigerien referendum. After this electoral victory, the French authorities pushed Bakary fully out of power, replaced him with Diori and organized a new election for the Territorial Assembly of Niger - again marked by a campaign of repression against opponents - to consolidate Diori's power.

Legacy

After the 2023 Niger coup d'état, the Junta started to rename places with French names including "Avenue General

" which was renamed into "Avenue Djibo Bakary" in honor of Bakary.

References

External links

Bakary in BritannicaNigerdiaspora.net - Remembering of the death of Djibo Bakary every year on April 16 (in French)
1922 births 1998 deaths Nigerien independence activists People of French West Africa Nigerien socialists 20th-century Nigerien politicians Zarma-Songhai people {{Niger-politician-stub